Jon Stevens

Endure this evil month

Published Jan 12, 2013 at 10:43 pm
(Updated Jan 12, 2013 at 10:44 pm)

Make text smallerMake text larger

Here we are, not quite halfway through January, one of seven months with 31 days. It is a month Colette, the French novelist and performer, referred to as a “month of empty pockets.” Remarkabale! She must have had a Christmas like mine. But as this author of the novel, “Gigi,” said, “..let us endure this evil month.”

For me, enduring this January in particular will be bittersweet. The Steelers are not in the playoffs, and that is the bitter part. The sweet aspect is that I can watch the NFL playoffs without having anxiety attacks, apoplexy and swearing at the television to the point no one in my household will come anywhere near me.

“Why don’t you go to a sports bar and watch these games,” my wife said during one game, probably the one in which the Steelers had 50 turnovers against the Browns. Too late for this season, but finding an accommodating tavern is something I will seriously ponder for next season.

Now with the Steelers out of the picture and the NHL lockout resolved, is it go Penguins? Of course, that means more anxiety and the inevitable profanity hurled at the TV screen. Surely, people watch hockey at sports bars, too.

But enough about sports in January. Frankly, it is month with a host of significant events and some rather bizarre and unique holidays

It is a month for Capricorns and Aquarians.

On this date, Jan. 13, Jonathan Swift was ordained an Anglican priest in Ireland in 1695; in 1920, a New York Times editorial falsely reports rockets can never fly; in 1943, Hitler declares “total war”; the Beatles release the “Yellow Submarine” album in 1969; an Air Florida jet crashes into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C., and falls into the Potomac River in 1982, killing 78; and the Cowboys beat the Bills in Super Bowl XXVII in 1993.

Obviously, I didn’t know these facts off the top of my head. So, on a cold January day, if you find there is nothing to do, try a little research. It can be quite a learning experience. Did you know that today is “Make Your Dream Come True Day” ? I’m not sure if this has anything to do with Martin Luther King Day that is celebrated on Jan. 21.

Oh, and if anyone is looking send a greeting card this month, wish someone a happy Hot Tea Month, or a happy National Oatmeal Month, or my favorite, a happy National Bath Safety Month.

I guess January really isn’t all that evil when you come to think about it.

Last night, a Greene County young lady, Elissa McCracken, competed in the Miss America Pageant. Congratulations Elissa, no matter where you finished.

So, as we continue to plod through this month, keep in mind that February, the shortest month of the year, is 19 days away.

Doesn’t something happen on the 14th? Guess I will have do some more research.